


Just Another Ending

by Zaranell



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, Genocide Route
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-16
Updated: 2017-01-16
Packaged: 2018-09-17 18:07:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,257
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9336614
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zaranell/pseuds/Zaranell
Summary: When the same 'climactic battle' plays itself out the same way over and over, there's no reason to assume the next time will be any different. Right?A short "what-if" scenario surrounding the final encounter between Sans and the human.





	

Under normal circumstances, the chapel just before the king's throne room was one of the most serene places one could visit in the underground. It wasn't something Sans visited all that often; he usually preferred more secluded spots where he could comfortably nap without worry of interruption. Still, it was a nice room to stay in if one needed peace.

Today, Sans found himself guarding its exit, trying to enjoy the tranquility of the chapel for what he knew was probably the last time. Well, the last in this timeline, anyway. He was somewhat surprised once he realized how calm he was about the situation, but maybe that was just a symptom of the greater apathy he had developed recently. The kid was gonna show up sooner or later, and there was no point stressing out about it until then. Might as well relax.

The underground's last sentry wasn't sure how long he waited - it was hard to keep track of the hours with no sun or moon, and he didn't care what time it was anyway - but eventually he heard footsteps. Their pace was slightly faster than a walk, and their light sound indicated small origins. There was no mistaking who they belonged to. Out of the shadows stepped a human child, their clothes dirty from the long journey, their unkempt brown hair matted with sweat and covering their eyes, and one of their hands clutching a clean knife.

Sans examined the facial expression of the creature that was approaching him. He was fully aware this might not be the first time the child had made it this far, and while he didn't consider himself the best fighter in the world, he did have more than one trick up his sleeve the kid probably wouldn't like. While he had become lazy, nihilistic even, he wasn't planning on making things easy for the worst criminal that had ever entered these depths.

As the human grew closer, their face became slightly more visible in the light of the chapel windows. Ah, so this _isn't_ their first time, Sans thought. He didn't know much about humans, but he was pretty sure he could recognize when one was frustrated - and losing patience. It was hard not to feel some pride knowing he had set this abomination back more than once.

"Hmm... that's the expression of someone that's died... what, 15 times? Maybe 16? How about 17? It's hard to get an exact number at this point, honestly. Have you been keeping track? Am I getting hotter or colder with 17?"

He could see the child's mouth press into a thin line, the light bouncing off the metal of their weapon as their hands visibly shook. Oh yeah, they're DEFINITELY remembering what I told them back at the bridge now, the skeleton thought to himself. Shame they didn't listen, but maybe now they'll learn when to quit. Probably not, but still.

Snowdin's laziest resident was pretty sure he knew what to expect by this point, and confidently continued:

"Well, I guess it doesn't matter. If you haven't learned your lesson yet, I can teach it again. And again. A N D A G A I N."

The child kept shaking for another few seconds, until suddenly - they simply stopped. Their face (what was visible of it) returned to its blank state, their shoulders dropped, and they stood relaxed. Clearly they were taking a moment to breathe, but for all Sans knew, this was just a routine they did before every fight with him to focus. It made no difference either way. Then the human standing before him managed to do something he had never expected, something he had begun to suspect was actually impossible.

They laughed.

It started with a chuckle, quiet enough to be almost imperceptible, the shaking shoulders the only real indication it was occurring. Slowly it grew louder and louder, until eventually it evolved into a roaring cackle, the sound of the child's madness echoing throughout the chapel in a blasphemous cacaphony of savage cruelty.

The guardian was undeterred, but also uneasy. This was an anomaly within the anomaly, but it didn't change anything. Regardless of what timeline he happened to be in, the fight would still happen, that much he knew. Strange as it was, it wasn't like he was about to be scared off just because the kid apparently remembered what villains are supposed to do before a climactic battle.

"I like a bad joke as much the next guy, but even I'm not sure what's so funny about getting your ass kicked this many times."

Sans wasn't sure why he bothered with such a comment, given that the murderer of so many people didn't seem like one for conversation. As fate would have it, however, there was more than one surprise waiting for him. The malicious laughter filling the room subsided, and a moment later, Sans was finally shaken.

The child spoke.

"You're right. It doesn't matter how many times you've killed me. It could be one, or a hundred, or even a thousand. We could keep doing this until I can't remember anything else except fighting you and dying."

Objectively, their voice didn't sound very threatening - Undyne could sound scarier just by saying hello. Or, at least, she could if she were still alive. The thought made Sans's fists tighten around his jacket as he listened.

"It doesn't matter because sooner or later, it's all going to end. When I was in the ruins, I decided I had to erase everyone and everything in this world, and I hesitated before I killed the first monster. Their confused, pleading expression nearly stopped me. That won't happen again. Ever."

The child's posture shifted, beginning to stand more upright.

"Undyne slowed me down, but we both know what happened to her eventually. What makes you think you're going to be any different? What makes you think I care how long it takes?"

Sans said nothing in return. He had come to terms with the idea of a mindless killing machine, even if it's in the form of a human. It was simple and predictable, and it was easy to understand that a machine without emotion could slaughter innocents without a second thought. What he heard now, though, revealed a truth he was almost unwilling to comprehend: the figure before him wasn't mindless, and wasn't without emotion. It knew what it was doing. It understood the pain it was inflicting, and it didn't care. It was capable of letting others live, but it chose not to. And now, it was concerned about one thing and one thing only.

Eradication.

"But now that I think about it, I realize something. It used to be that my goal was to wipe out everything in this miserable cavern, then move onto the surface and see how far I could go. Papyrus, Undyne, the spiders, Mettaton - killing them was just a stepping stone towards what I thought I wanted. But now it occurs to me that what I truly _want_ at this point is a little different. I'll get to the surface, sure, but that's not what's most important to me anymore. You know what I want more than anything else in the entire world now?"

The child lifted their head slightly, allowing a few strands of hair to part. A solitary eye stared at Sans from behind the curtain of bangs with a piercing gaze, a gleam of sheer red malevolence visible in its depths.

_"I want to watch you die."_

 


End file.
